Roasting Morning: From Green Beans to Cup

About this experience

This morning takes place behind the café at Elena’s small drum roaster. She starts with green coffee from the farms she buys from and explains how she chooses lots, what the moisture and density numbers mean and what she pays compared with commodity prices.

You roast the same coffee three ways, light, medium and darker, watching the temperature curve and listening for first crack. Then you cup all three side by side the way roasters and buyers do, and hear how Elena decides which roast profile goes on the shelf.

Your day

1. 8:00 AM

   Green coffee

   Look at, smell and compare green beans from three origins and learn how lots are graded.

   30 min

2. 8:30 AM

   Roaster walkthrough

   How the drum roaster works, safety checks and reading the roast curve software.

   30 min

3. 9:00 AM

   Roast three batches

   Charge the roaster, control heat and airflow and call the drop for each batch.

   1 hr 15 min

4. 10:15 AM

   Cupping

   Cup your three roasts side by side and score them with Elena.

   45 min

5. 11:00 AM

   Sourcing and pricing

   What direct trade means in practice and how a bag of coffee gets priced.

What’s included

• Your three roasted batches to take home
• Coffee and pastries
• Cupping form and roast log template

Good to know

• The roaster runs hot. Guests operate controls only with Elena beside them; closed-toe shoes required.
• Roasting produces smoke and chaff; let the host know about any respiratory sensitivities.
• Suitable for ages 16+.

Your curator

Elena Ruiz16 years in specialty coffee, 7 as an owner

Elena Ruiz worked as a barista and green coffee buyer for a decade before opening her own café with a small roaster in the back. She now runs two locations and buys directly from three farms in Colombia and Guatemala. She still works the bar every Saturday.